A blog about nutrition, fitness, and goal setting strategies to help you live your happiest, most fulfilled life.

Mastering Meal Prep + Free 3-day Clean Eating Plan

If you’ve been a reader for a while, you already know that I swear by doing Sunday meal prep for the week ahead. A couple of weeks ago, I declared that one of my goals was to make July a month of saving rather than spending, and one of the pieces of that was focusing on being more efficient and budget-conscious with my meal planning. Several of you expressed that you’d like to see some of the meal plans that I made for myself, and I’ve got not one, but TWO for you today!

In Living a Whole Foods Lifestyle: A complete system for clean (fast!) food, I talked about my favourite gadgets and ingredients for speeding up the healthy meal making process. The feedback on that e-book has been great, but I know through chatting to some of you that you still get overwhelmed when it comes to recipe and ingredient selection. I don’t blame you at all – with endless Pinterest boards of delicious meals, it can be really hard to decide on just a few to make AND keep your grocery budget in check.

One of the strategies that I’ve found works best is to select recipes that can be made in big batches with similar ingredients. I’m the type that is totally fine with eating the same meal for lunch most days of the week, as long as the following week means something new on the menu. Using this strategy has 3 big benefits:

You can keep the number of items on your grocery list down.

You can take advantage of discounts by buying in bulk.

You’ll save time by prepping a few big meals, rather than a bunch of small ones.

If you’re liking the sound of those perks as much as I do, I’ve put together a little peek at what one of my meal plans would look like for 3 days.

This meal plan contains recipes, as well as a few ‘non-recipes’ – or meals that you can throw together quickly without following specific instructions. (The non-recipes aren’t included in the ‘On the Menu’ page below, but are on ‘The Plan’ page.) I’ve also provided plant-based alternatives for those who prefer a vegetarian diet. For example, you’ll find my Jamaican Jerk Turkey Burgers with Mango Salsa, as well as Balsamic Portobello Burgers, and you’ve got the option to choose whichever one appeals more.

The Exploding Burrito Bowl recipe is brand spankin’ new to the blog, and even if the free meal plan download isn’t of interest, I’d love to share the recipe with you. It’s vibrant, flavour-packed, portable, and fabulous as a big-batch recipe that you can take for lunch throughout the week.

Exploding Burrito Bowl

by Angela Simpson

Prep Time: 15 mins

Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients (4, appx 1.3 cups each)

1/2 cup uncooked brown rice

2.5 cups cooked black beans, well drained if canned

1 orange pepper, seeded and diced

1 yellow pepper, seeded and diced

1 green onion, white and light green parts, diced

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced

1.5 cups diced cherry tomatoes

1 tsp chili powder

2-3 tbsp loosely packed torn cilantro

1/2 avocado, diced

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

juice of 1 lime

Instructions

In a pot, cook the rice according to package directions.

Meanwhile, drain and rinse beans and chop all vegetables as indicated.

Combine everything but the avocado, lime juice and olive oil in a large bowl, along with the rice once it’s ready.

Whisk together the olive oil and lime juice, then drizzle it over the salad.

But wait!

That’s not all. Several of you have already worked with me as health coaching clients on custom individual meal plans, and while I love doing those, there’s only one of me and many of you! Therefore, in order to make myself as accessible to as many of you as possible at an affordable cost, I’m looking for your feedback! I’ve put together an additional 5-day plan (entirely different from the 3-day one), which is more reflective of what I’d create for one-on-one clients.

Here’s what’s inside (items in bold are not in the 3-day version):

A little intro note from yours truly about how to use the plan

A menu for 5 days – breakfast, lunch and dinner, gluten-free with vegetarian options

All recipes included in the menu

A plan for when to make what (with most prep being on Sundays)

Tips for using up leftover ingredients

A list of healthy snack suggestions (I usually have about 2/day)

A shopping list that includes everything you’ll need for the week

Here’s the deal.

I’m putting this 5-day clean eating meal plan up for $5 and you can purchase it here. If you’ve been looking for some extra help in jumping on board the healthy eating bandwagon, it just might be what you need! I’m totally happy to create more of these for anyone wanting to whip their nutrition game into shape, but I’d love to get your feedback first before making it a regular thing.

So now it’s over to you.

If this is of interest, if you have any suggestions, or if you think it’s the absolute worst idea I’ve ever thrown out there, please speak up! Feel free to leave a comment on this post or email me at eatspinrunrepeat (at) gmail (dot) com.

And in the meantime, tell me…

What’s in your lunch box this week?

What’s your biggest struggle when it comes to creating and sticking to a meal plan? Do you do it in the first place?

Disclaimer: Please keep in mind that I’m not a doc – I’m a health coach that really, really loves healthy food! Be sure to check with your doctor before making any drastic changes to your diet. The plans included here are intended for individuals that are generally in good health. If you’ve got a pre-existing medical condition or unique dietary needs, be sure to ask them if this type of plan is right for you.

Angela Simpson

My name is Angela and I've got a fiery passion for turning fresh, healthy ingredients into delicious mouth-watering meals. I love veggies, seafood, avocados, and exploring all things wellness in Los Angeles, the city I'm now proud to call home.

I just love all of those colors in the burrito bowl! I think the meal plans are a great idea – while I generally don’t think one meal plan can be applicable to everyone’s body, people want guidance and direction, so this is a great start!

I totally agree with you Megan – everyone’s needs are unique so it’s hard to develop a one-size-fits-all plan. This one is mainly to provide some general guidance on what a week’s worth of clean meals might look like, because I think it’s common for people to fall into the habit of eating only foods they’re familiar with. That leads to boredom, and then they go back to the less nutrient-dense foods. One of my greatest realizations when I shifted to clean eating was realizing how many different foods there were out there that I’d never heard of, let alone tried. I’m hoping these resources can help others see the same and fall in love with healthy food like I have! 🙂

No problem Lauren! I’m the same – aside from rent, it’s my next largest spending category. I don’t love budgeting but I find that if I think of it as a game, it makes the whole process a bit more fun. 🙂

Oh wow! That picture is making me hungry! It is also chalked full of fibre, protein, carbs and good fats! All things I need for my trail training regimen.

On the lunch note, I’m like you, I don’t mind eating the same thing for a week! Lol This week it’s chicken breast tortilla wraps with lettuce, peppers, cheese, and mustard and sour cream, for a low-fat sauce option. One thing I’m thinking about making for lunches is a black bean and rice tortilla. Something you can pre-make and throw in the freezer for when you’re in a pinch. Do you have any yummy recipes you can share!

Your lunch this week sounds awesome! Unfortunately I don’t really have a black bean and rice tortilla recipe, but I do have a couple of similar ones you might like! My Southwestern Tortilla Soup could be made with black beans rather than the chicken in the recipe, and these Fiesta Wraps are tortillas with a lentil mixture inside but you could definitely do rice and/or beans instead. The wraps aren’t the best for freezing but the soup keeps really well in the freezer. I’ve made big batches in the past and it’s super handy to have for nights when you don’t feel like cooking, or on weekends when you don’t have much time to make your weekday lunches. Hope that helps! 🙂

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welcome!

I’m Angela, and I’m so glad you stopped by! If you’re looking for healthy, delicious food, heart-pumping workouts, and inspiration for all things holistic wellness, you’re in the right spot. Have a look around, or learn more about me here.